Body Scanners: Up Close & Personal

The scanner’s millimeter wave technology makes clothes seem to disappear. While some travelers see the scanners as an invasion of privacy, they were installed at the nation’s largest single-site jail to improve dignity and reduce lawsuits from inmates who objected to the standard strip searches.

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The system scans inmates for weapons and other contraband like cigarettes and cell phones. Every inmate is scanned on his or her way into and out of jail.

Strip searches are now done only when something suspicious turns up on the whole body scan. Reducing strip searches was one of the first priorities for Sheriff Tom Dart when he took office four years ago.

"This is not an x-ray," explained Howell. "We are looking for things that shouldn’t be there."

The systems also keep corrections officers safer because they can see problems before they lay hands on an inmate. Unlike the airport systems, there is no need to blur the faces of the inmates being scanned at county jail.

Inmates are told to open their mouths during the scan, so corrections officers can see if they are hiding anything inside.